More Clock Means Less Football
We are on the verge of the second week of this year’s college football season and the second week with “the new clock rules” in place.
The game clock now starts when the ball is put in play after first downs and on change of possession. Previously it was started on the snap. Also, the clock now starts when the ball is kicked off as opposed to when it is caught. Oh, and the kicking tee was shortened this year.
Was that one just thrown in for kicks (pun fully intended)? The idea is to reduce the amount of deep end zone touchbacks. But why not just move the spot of kick back, make the kicker kick from a stand-still position, add ten yards to each side of the field, or just have him throw it down there?
All of these implementations are aimed at reducing the game times by what, five or ten minutes, 30 at the most? (Officially it was an average of 17 minutes.) But do we as fans really want games that last only two-and-a-half hours? Some fans drive longer than that to the game. When did anyone have a problem with too much college football?
There has already been considerable backlash from coaches and fans. Change is usually accompanied by backlash, especially when it wears a headset and stands on the sidelines. But this time the change is trying to fix something that was not broken.
Games are still going to run long. Iowa State and Toledo had a triple over time game in week one. Maybe an extra minute or two during the game would have allowed it to end in regulation.
Not to mention that these new rules reduce the chance of a late game comeback. Texas’ national championship last year? May not have happened with these current rules.
The result so far is less plays, less time, more confusion and more frustration. We can’t judge these rules solely on week one. And we’ll probably get used to less football. But do we really want to?
The game clock now starts when the ball is put in play after first downs and on change of possession. Previously it was started on the snap. Also, the clock now starts when the ball is kicked off as opposed to when it is caught. Oh, and the kicking tee was shortened this year.
Was that one just thrown in for kicks (pun fully intended)? The idea is to reduce the amount of deep end zone touchbacks. But why not just move the spot of kick back, make the kicker kick from a stand-still position, add ten yards to each side of the field, or just have him throw it down there?
All of these implementations are aimed at reducing the game times by what, five or ten minutes, 30 at the most? (Officially it was an average of 17 minutes.) But do we as fans really want games that last only two-and-a-half hours? Some fans drive longer than that to the game. When did anyone have a problem with too much college football?
There has already been considerable backlash from coaches and fans. Change is usually accompanied by backlash, especially when it wears a headset and stands on the sidelines. But this time the change is trying to fix something that was not broken.
Games are still going to run long. Iowa State and Toledo had a triple over time game in week one. Maybe an extra minute or two during the game would have allowed it to end in regulation.
Not to mention that these new rules reduce the chance of a late game comeback. Texas’ national championship last year? May not have happened with these current rules.
The result so far is less plays, less time, more confusion and more frustration. We can’t judge these rules solely on week one. And we’ll probably get used to less football. But do we really want to?
posted by NCAA Football at 11:02 PM
3 Comments:
Preach on!! I totally agree with you, the clock was fine the way it was. I don't agree with the change at all.
Boy, do I agree with you. What "savings" in game time exist, have more than been taken up by additional TV commercial time. I know it's all about money, but as a fan who has paid for his seat in the stands, I really resent it.
I agree completely. I couldn't care less about the scheduling problems of already greedy TV conglomerates. If they can't handle the length of games, then the NCAA should do what the NFL is trying to do and take control of the games outright. Then games can last as long as they take, you can improve and streamline reviewed plays and there can be more football coverage and less of those annoying commercials. You could then have every NCAA game "On Demand" for an entire week after gameday, better coverage of the offseason and fans can follow their teams from anywhere in the country. I can't believe alumnis all over the country aren't already screaming for this. TV needs to adapt to the game of football, not the other way around.
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